How Blackjack Can Help You Buy a Secondhand Car

Most of the time people are broke, but if you play your cards right maybe you could buy a ‘new’ car.

Money is often tight; this is sadly an unfortunate reality for about 90% of the world’s population. With the current celebrity worshiping culture going around and the fact pretty much anyone can get a credit card these days, it’s hard not to find yourself feeling tempted to do something; at the very least to appear to be a bit better off. Often as a result of the unattainable aspirations most people have, the route some take results in them becoming financially unstable for quite a long time. I’m talking about having several major credit cards maxed out, loans against their houses, hell even loans on their lives; seriously, this happens.

But what if there was a way to make a little extra bit money, and improve your situation just a tad without having to risk all that? Well, if you have the know-how and apply the right blackjack strategy, there is a way. Maybe you could even get yourself a secondhand car; arguably the epitome of middle class status purchases.

Starting Out: Basics of the Game

If you’ve never really played blackjack or your experience consists of a few drunken hands either in your friends’ basement or at the local casino, you’re going to need to properly learn about blackjack and how to play to win. Getting your head around the strategy can prove difficult, but if you study a basic strategy card long enough and can commit it to memory, you’ll be playing intuitively and know the correct response every time you’re dealt a new hand. Let’s look at a typical game.

In any game of blackjack the objective is simple and it’s always the same. Your hand consists of two cards which are dealt face up and on show to everyone at the table; with these you try to get to 21 without going over. However, more importantly, you must also beat the dealer’s hand; one card of which will be dealt face up and be on show to players at first, with the second being revealed after all players have requested any additional cards, or placed further bets.

Whenever it’s your turn to act you will be given four options; Hit, Stand, Double Down or Split. Hit means you want another card, Stand means no changes and Double Down allows you to increase your original bet by up to 100%. Splitting your cards into two hands can happen if the two cards initially dealt have the same value; your cards are separated and each hand is dealt another card. You will have to place a second bet if you split.

That’s the general idea.

Basic Blackjack Strategy

Now that you know how to play, let’s take a look at basic playing strategy. As you would assume, your cards are important. However, the card the dealer has on shown is probably more important. Here’s why.

Of the 13 types of card in standard deck, 4 of them have a value of 10. Because of this, the dealer’s second card has around a 1 in 3 chance of being worth 10. So, because it’s all you have to work with, you need to act on the information provided by the one card that the dealer has showing.

If it’s a 6, then there’s a 1 in 3 chance that his next card is 10, giving him 16. Bear in mind the rules say he has to hit at 16. Since there’s still an almost 1 in 3 chance that his next card is also a 10, there’s a good chance he’ll go over 21. So by seeing the dealer’s 6, you can assume there’s a good chance that he’ll go over 21; if this is case you need to aim to be over 16, but not bust.

A very basic strategy to follow is, if the dealer shows 6 or lower then take fewer hits, since the dealer has a weak hand and there’s a good chance he’ll bust. If the dealer shows 7 or above, take more hits since the dealer has a strong hand and probably won’t take a hit themselves.

Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

As a fresh-eyed beginner it’s important to not make easily avoidable mistakes which are going to affect you winning. Here a few key ones to avoid.

First, never increase your bets drastically when you’re on a roll. Winning streaks are just coincidences, plain and simple. As you bet before the cards are dealt, there are no tactics at play at all when you’re betting. Try and keep your bets consistent as you’re odds are always the same.

Although the easiest way to win is being dealt a blackjack – an Ace and a face card – the main objective of the game is to beat the dealer; bear this in mind if you have a high hand and don’t take a hit unless you presume the dealer has a much stronger hand.

Splitting 10s might seem like a good idea, but if you split them you’re throwing away a hand of 20 which is as good as you can get without hitting blackjack. Unusually, you should never split 10s.

And lastly, never under estimate the advantage you can gain by properly learning basic strategy. This article only touches on the basics, so put some time in and learn how to play properly; otherwise, you’re giving the house an unfair advantage every time you sit down to play a hand.

If you can handle the basics, after a while it might be time to start some advanced play, such as the Kelly betting system, and try and make larger sums of money winning at blackjack. Fair warning though, they require the ability to do pretty complicated mathematics in your head, very quickly whilst you’re playing you hand; although, some people have natural gift for such things, if this is you, check it out. Also take a look at some strategy cards which can be used to advise you what to do in almost any situation.

So, with enough time invested and of course probably some luck, you could potentially win enough money to get yourself a secondhand car. That’s something not short of amazing, from just playing cards.

However, if you manage to get really good maybe you could afford a brand spanking new automobile, or a house, or even a yacht; all coming as the result of a simple game being played properly. I suppose, if you somehow become incredible you could theoretically buy your own casino; wouldn’t that be a fitting result?

It’s time to get studying.